Cozy on the Sun Porch

The past few days have been beautiful here in Minnesota.  Sunny, warm yet not too humid and slightly breezy.

The girls and I have been spending most of our relaxation time on the sun porch.  Yesterday it occurred to me that I haven't shared this area of our home with you in a very long time.

Each spring I like to rearrange the furniture and try out different color schemes.  It currently looks like this.

This years theme was inspired by a vintage tablecloth picked up at a garage sale.

The sun porch overlooks our backyard and the park beyond it giving us the illusion of a wide open space which I love.

The girls and I love to eat breakfast and lunch at the table and watch the birds and butterflies in the garden.

The view is so pretty whatever time of day it is.

For a centerpiece I decided to go with something simple so the kids can easily move it out of the way if they'd like.

A wire cake plate, a candle and some rocks seemed simple and pretty to me.

I also added a small dish and a pedestal creamer which the girls use to place any flowers they pick.

Next to the entrance door I place an over sized lantern and a chair for extra seating.

Right now the girls have their picnic basket filled with small toys resting on the chair.

The best spot on the porch is this cozy corner.

The perfect spot to relax, read or take a quick snooze.

Big, fluffy pillows help us snuggle right in.

Next to the lounger was the perfect place to add a few of my favorite things.

Another over sized lantern.

A small red bench.

And a pitcher filled with flowers.

Aren't they gorgeous. 

So cheerful and pretty - love them.

And finally, next to the door leading out onto the deck I've placed a patio chair and a galvanized bucket filled with more pillow - just in case!

Hope you enjoy the tour.

Talk to you soon,

Robin

Feathered Nest Friday

Garden Chores Can Surprise You

I spent the morning yesterday completing some long overdue chores in the garden like weeding and deadheading. 

As I was finishing up, I glanced over at my weed bucket trying to gauge if I could cram in a few more weeds.

What I saw had me whipping my head back around for another look.

As I was mindlessly deadhead,  a bucket full of pretty was forming . . .

How gorgeous is that!

Now some of you maybe be shaking your head.  Thinking to yourself that I've finally fallen off my rocker.  Maybe your right, but where a few may see crispy, slightly browning  flowers this petal loving nut sees pure beauty.

So instead of throwing them out, I placed the bucket next to the front yard fence so I can enjoy them a while longer. 

 Who knows, maybe another like-minded petal loving nut may walk by and enjoy the view!

Oh and look!

Phlox are about to bloom - - excitement's high folks!

Hope you all have a lovely day!

Robin

The Front Door

When it comes to the outside of my home, all my attention is focused on the gardens.  As I happily attend to the weeding, the watering, the dreaming I very rarely take the time to simple look around and wonder what visitors would think.  With this in mind, I grabbed my camera and started taking photos of the house without the focus being on the flowers.  What an eye opener!  It's amazing what you notice in a picture you wouldn't otherwise notice.

After pouring over the photos,  I've come to the realization that my front door area is boring - -

 Really Boring!

Desperate to add some interest A.S.A.P.  I headed out to the garage in hope of finding something - anything to help my poor negletced front door.

An old farmhouse chair, an enamelware bowl and a pack of inpatient's called out to me saying "we can help, we can help"

Weak and slightly giddy with relief, I arranged my finds next to the front door and am loving the results.

The chair is a recent flea market find.  Eventually a new coat of paint would be nice, but for now a quick bath was all that it needed.

Yep, that helped a lot.

Down-right cute I think!

Sure, it could use a little more attention, but it's hot out there right now!  So hot and humid a person starts melting at just the thought of going outside!

Maybe when it cools down a bit I could work on some of theses issues. . .

A door mat would be a nice addition too don't you think?

You can bet I'll be doing a lot of thinking about this area in the next week.

Any thoughts or suggestions - - because you know it's too hot to think right now!

see ya,

Robin

Flowers for the Kitchen

Hi!  Remember Me?

Sorry my posts are so few and far between lately.  Summer is always such a busy time and I just haven't had the energy to keep up with blogging.  Not sure how the days and weeks are flying by since my to-do list mysteriously isn't getting any smaller.  Instead, the girls and I are spending  time together enjoying the summer.  Swimming and laundry seem to be all that I'm accomplishing.  But that's OK, projects can wait - - for now!

Any-hoo, moving on . . . today I thought I'd show you a quick project I finished for my kitchen windowsill.

I gathered up a few miniature bottles from my growing collection.  Strolled through the garden to clip a  handful of my favorite flowers ( pulled a few weeds too, just to convinced myself I haven't neglected the garden too much :)

Next, I plopped the flowers into the bottles, lined them up in a straight row and then added a stone found on our latest ATV trip just for fun.

Tada! 

 Ten minutes tops (ok maybe fifteen with "all" the weeding)  and the kitchen windowsill has a new look.  It's pretty too!  I'm loving it!

I fell in love with dill last year after picking up a bunch at the farmers market.  This year I'm growing my own.  These are the first to bloom.  The combo of yellow and green is SOOO  GORGEOUS

- I can't get enough!  I enjoy giving them a gentle sweep of the hand every time I'm at the sink.  I find the scent so refreshing.

Lakspur in varing shades of purple - again so pretty.  The vintage inkwell bottle is a recent find from our first camping trip this season.  Oh, and look - - there is the stone I was talking about.  I have a fasination with egg shaped stones so I'm always on the lookout for them when were out and about.

*Sigh*

"Envy" Zinna's - -  someone was spot-on when naming this flower!

Isn't the color AMAZING!

I could look at this flower all day!

So there you have it - Quick. Easy. Pretty!

I love the fact that it fits right into the simple. breezy. casual. style I'm  working on spreading throughout the house.

Just for fun, since I had my camera out already, I grouped the dill, zinna and daisy's close together to see how it woud look.

I'm thinking you might be seeing an arrangment of dill and zinna's in the very near future!  I'm digging the colors together.

What do you think?  Is the combo a winner with you too!

see ya,

Robin



In The Garden

With the hot, humid weather we have been experiencing the last week or so, it finally feels as if summer has arrived in Minnesota!  My garden loves it!

The veggie garden has decided it's time to grow.  It seems everything is doubling in size overnight.

Tomatoes are starting to flower.

Ms. J's salsa garden is looking good.

Maiden Pinks are in full bloom.

Ms. E's corn is looking great.

My "Envy" Zinnia are about to bloom.

Profusion Cherry Zinnia's and Gladiolus are taking off fast now.

Even the main backyard garden is starting to show some color.

The roses are blooming.

The Meadow Sage is also starting to bloom.

The pretty, cheerful daisy are just starting to open up.

Can't wait until they are in full bloom.

One white phlox is blooming.

So are the Hydrangea's - Oh this is a happy day!

But the prettiest spot in the garden right not is just outside the veggie garden.

The speedwell is in full bloom.  They don't last long but boy are they pretty like this.

Love them.

Hope you enjoyed this mini garden tour.  Talk to you soon,

Robin

Trimming Trees

The girls and I have been working on a long overdue project - - Tree Trimming.

While I've been climbing up ladders and using a handsaw until I thought my arm was about to fall off  the girls have had fun making a fort out of all the trimmings. 

Here's Ms. J sticking her head out the doorway!

They even let me inside one time.  The girls spruced up the inside with blankets, pillows, games, coloring books and snacks.  I hardly saw them all day!

After the fun was over, we went to work cutting the limbs into easy to handle lengths.

Apparently wood cutting makes me a little crazy!

We plan to use what we cut up in our fire pit come fall.  I love campfires in the fall.

TA-DAAAA!

In the end we have two buckets filled and waiting for fall.

Next week will tackle the pine trees!

Thanks for stopping by,

Robin